I wanted to get this thread started up. I picked up a nice looking 14.8 cu ft freezer off of Craigslist last week with the intention of making an 8 tap coffin keezer. I currently have a 2 tap kegerator and it just isn't enough.

I'm still working through my design while trying to get the skeleton build. I've got a platform with casters done and need to plan my next steps.

The lid on the freezer is kind of banged up. I think I am going to remove it and replace with a DIY lid made from two 1/2" plywood sheets sandwiched together and backed with 2+" of foam insulation inside the freezer. Any reason why this would be a bad idea?

I'm looking for a way to route the drain line and I had a stroke of genius this morning that I think kills a few birds with 1 stone. There is no heat exhaust from the back of the freezer (as determined because the back doesn't require and minimal clearance). Since I'm replacing the lid and using a collar, why couldn't I just turn the freezer backwards in the box? This puts the drain hole and the freezer front (biggest heat transfer surface) towards the back of the box which will remain open. It'll be much easier to drain from there and reduce heat transfer problems. Thoughts?

I still need to figure out what I'm going to use for the bar top. I don't know if I will use ceramic or granite tile or if I will go for something different.

How critical is cold-air routing inside the faucet box? I see some people say they don't have any problems and others say that they do. I don't mind putting in a few computer case fans and routing the air using foam insulation to make small chambers but I'm not sure I want to go through all of the efforts to put in a duct system with a serious fan.

Any input is greatly appreciated! I am stoked about this build and am looking forward to getting it operational. A huge shout-out and thanks to Jester. I'm definitely using his design as inspiration and he also sent me his Google Sketch-Up files which has made my job a good bit easier.

And plenty of pictures will come as I get this build going. Not much to see as of now but I'll get some shots up this afternoon.

Good luck and enjoy the build, I am finishing mine up right now. I put some computer fans in the coffin to circulate air up and back down into the freezer, i noticed that it was quite a bit warmer than the freezer and it is completely insulated.

I see no issues with turning the freezer around backwards either, sounds like a pretty smart idea to me.

If the top is banged up but you are covering it anyways why does it matter?

That is a different idea to turn the freezer around. To open it means you would need to pull it far away from the wall for filling, emptying, adjusting, etc. Its easy to build a surround with an air gap for cooling. On mine I did not cover the cooling gaps at the top of the rim so the hot air can escape.

Making your own lid will work others have done this. If it were me I would use the old lid. No matter how banged up it is its going to be covered and no one will see it anyway. Plus attaching it and aligning it up with the base will be much easier.

A collar and a coffin seems like a lot of work for just two more taps. My Keezer is of similar size and I went with five taps. Even with five taps I'm having trouble keeping them all hooked up. If you went with six taps you would not need to build a collar and the cost would be around a $100 cheaper.

Ohh and adding some visuals to the thread helps a lot even if its just what you have done so far.

I can fit 8 kegs without the collar but it also makes my bar top a bit too short for my liking. With the collar and caster wheels, I have my top estimated to be at about 4' tall right now. If I remove the collar, that pulls it down to less than 3.5'. The collar is more about getting the bar to the right height than about having more storage space but that is an added benefit.

Turning the freezer around has no bearing on the way it opens. I'm ditching the lid for sure. It's so crappy that I don't want it in the build. I will still put the hinges on the back of the bar so it lifts from the front. They will be connected to the collar and new lid, not the freezer, so it won't require me to mod the freezer in any way other than to remove the lid.

Here's where I'm at right now:

Plans for base on casters

Plans for bar top and coffin

Pics of freezer and base as it sits now with one shot of banged up lid

I just measured my Keezer and it is just under 3.5' tall and it seems a good height for me being 6' tall. But if the added height is a must you could make the base taller to get to 4'. IMO that would be easier than adding a collar with all of the insulating and sealing issues. Plus the area around the collar will be warmer possibly making a circulating fan necessary. A link to my Keezer build is in my sig for how I did things.

Thanks, purplehaze. I'll check out your build for sure. I've looked at probably 100+ in trying to get my design down for this one. I've also got a buddy who is quite handy with electronics and I'm going to work with him to make LCD boards for each tap so I can use that to label them instead of traditional methods. I think it'll be a pretty interesting take on things.

Well I met with a friend of mine tonight who does a lot of woodworking and has helped me with my aquarium stand projects. We've heavily modified the design but I think it'll come out a good bit sturdier.

I don't have anything sketched up yet that is presentable. I'll get started ripping some 1x6's and 2x6's soon and will put up plenty of pictures as I go. This should be a good bit different from a structural perspective than the rest of the coffin keezer builds out there.

Small update... I ordered myself a Love TSS2-2100 controller and two TS-2 stainless steel temp probes. This unit is capable of dual inputs so I figure I can use one probe in the freezer and another in the coffin. The freezer probe will cue the compressor and the coffin probe will cue a set of circulation fans. Has anyone else done their build this way?

Thanks, jro. The revised design is all in the structure. Let me see if I can put it in words so it makes sense without having a picture...

I'm going to get some 1x6's and rip cut them to the right width to make "ribs" from the edge of the base and butt up against the freezer. These will make the vertical support posts. I'm also going to rip cut some 2x6's for the back support pieces.

I'm not going to do a true collar, it'll be more of a mock collar. I cant really explain that without a drawing or a picture so it will have to wait. I'm hoping I can start cutting my lumber this weekend. I'm waiting on a pocket jig to come in so I can screw in the lumber nice and neat.